How many Dan Sullivans are allowed to run in a Senate race in Alaska? According to the state’s election authority, just one.
Alaska’s elections director has deemed retired schoolteacher Dan J Sullivan – who has the same name and party affiliation as incumbent Senator Dan S Sullivan – ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot in August.
She concluded that his declaration of candidacy was designed “to confuse or mislead” voters, compromising the ballot’s fairness. He has 30 days to appeal the decision.
A probe began when the Republican senator accused his Democratic opponent of rigging the race, as Democrats seek a majority in the US Senate in the November midterm elections.
Division of Elections director Carol Beecher posted a letter on the matter on Monday, determining that his declaration of candidacy was “not filed in order to declare an actual good-faith candidacy” for the office.
She noted that the proposed challenger has never registered to vote under the name Dan Sullivan, had never before been affiliated with the Republican party, styled his campaign materials after the senator and hired a political consultant who had long supported Democratic candidates.
She did not mention finding any evidence of alleged coordination between Dan J Sullivan and Democratic Party officials or Democratic candidate Mary Peltola.
In a statement to the BBC, Senator Sullivan’s campaign praised the decision and thanked the state’s lieutenant governor for launching the probe to uphold Alaskans’ right to a free and fair election “without a sham candidate”.
Speaking to reporters earlier this month, Senator Sullivan used expletives to argue that his opponent is “purposely trying to trick my constituents to rig the election for Peltola”.
A spokesman for his campaign blamed Democrats, saying that “they’ve resorted to dirty, dishonest tactics – recruiting a sham candidate with the sole purpose of deceiving voters and manipulating Alaska’s election system”.
“We are reviewing all of our legal options and aren’t ruling anything out,” spokesman Nate Adams said at the time.
The campaign for former Democratic congresswoman Mary Peltola, who is also running for the Senate seat, denied any involvement in the nascent campaign, and the new candidate has insisted that he is serious about his candidacy.
The BBC has contacted Peltola’s campaign for comment.
A week ago, Alaska’s Republican Lt Governor announced an investigation into the teacher’s run, citing “credible allegations” that he declared his candidacy “in coordination with another candidate and campaign” with the intent to confuse Alaska voters.
Dan J Sullivan, who is originally from the US Midwest but has spent the last 50 years in Alaska, has never previously won public office. He wrote on social media on Sunday that he had “met the qualification” and entered the race because he is “unhappy with the 12 year record of the current Senator and I feel we need a change”, according to the Associated Press.
“It’s that simple,” he said.
In an interview with Alaska Public Media, he said he was motivated to run against the senator due to his opposition to President Donald Trump’s attempt to create a $1.8bn “anti-weaponization fund” which critics say will funnel money to Trump’s allies.
He told the outlet that he was running for Senate “because I think it’s where I can have the most impact”.
But he also acknowledged his slim chances.
“Let’s be realistic, it’s a huge long shot,” he said. “But I’m going to give it my best shot.”
On his campaign website, he seeks to differentiate himself from the sitting senator, writing: “We need a Sullivan that stands up for Alaska.”
By BBC News
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